re: Anyone here ever learned a category IV or V language?

Is it really this short of a time to learn another language? I always found learning a language difficult. Is this just conversational or fluent?

Those hours are how long they consider it to take for "general professional proficiency." Also, the hours listed are only classroom hours. They don't include self-study or practice.

Is it a “use it or lose it” kinda thing?

Cat IV, Russian DR1 (down the hill), DLI-FLC Monterey

AMA

Graduated from university with my first degree in Russian Language.
Spent 3 summers in an intensive language program at Indiana University, a summer in Moscow and Leningrad (yeah, that long ago). Then worked for one of "Those Agencies" before I went back to school and got a physics/optics degree. Studying Italian now for the heck of it.

quote:

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It's all Greek to me.

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I did Greek after two years of Latin and didn't find it too much harder.

Finnish should be Category V.

I’m a truck driver and only speak Arabic. Apps can translate my typing on here too English is pretty cool. AI helps me read threads. I haven’t learned English but plan to one day. Would help with reading street signs here in America.

Eta: Death to America
TIA

Eta2: Was much funnier in my head

My nephews that grew up in Anchorage learned Russian in high school. The youngest, and his then gf, both taught 'English as a second language' classes at a Russian school for Russian executives during the day. They were mostly oil & gas executives. At night they taught the executives families English for extra money. He posted lots of pictures of them hanging out with Russian friends on his FB page. They were saving the money from the private lessons. It was pretty lucrative. They had just signed on for another couple of years, right before they to leave Russia when they invaded Ukraine.

The older brother also spoke Japanese too. He's in the Navy. He started out as a communications technician. He was helping run the communications room in one of the palaces in Iraq in 2003.

He eventually learned some of the Arabic they spoke in Iraq. After he went into the SWCC program and became a Chief, he helped train some of the Iraqi troops we put in power. When Israel got new stealth boats, he went over to train some of their special forces. He's helped train and trained with guys from all over. Some German sailors died during some Arctic training he went through. He told me about river raids some of the Ukrainian guys he helped train made on Russian munition depots.

Languages used to come very easy, before my hearing went total shite. Grew up speaking English at home, French with one Grandmother, German with the other, the whole family went attended Latin mass. Grandparents have all passed away so those languages have been unused for many decades.

Learned Korean in the mid 80's while over there for a few years. I can still read and write it (handy for shopping at the Asian markets), but vocabulary has dropped off significantly since leaving the Army 30 years ago. Found the written language relatively easy to learn, the spoken dialects are/were quite challenging.